The SteamRanger Heritage Railway is a 82 kilometres long 1600 mm broad gauge tourist railway, formerly the Victor Harbor railway line of the South Australian Railways (SAR). It is operated by the not-for-profit South Australian Division of the Australian Railway Historical Society. As the last operating non-suburban line of the former broad-gauge network, on which Australia's first public railway was opened, the line and its associated rail assets have high historical significance.
South Australian Railways (SAR) was the statutory corporation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Australian National, and its Adelaide urban lines were transferred to the State Transport Authority.
Redhen railcar was the nickname given to the 300 and 400 classes of diesel-hydraulic railcars designed and built by the South Australian Railways’ Islington Railway Workshops between 1955 and 1971. The class remained in service until 1996 and remain a nostalgic part of South Australian culture; some are operated by the SteamRanger Heritage Railway, the National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide and other railway preservation entities.
The 2000 class and 2100 class were diesel multiple units that operated on the Adelaide rail network between 1980 and 2015. They were built by Comeng in Granville, New South Wales in 1979–1980.
The National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide, South Australia is the largest railway museum in Australia. More than 100 major exhibits, mainly from the South Australian Railways (SAR) and Commonwealth Railways and their successor, Australian National, are displayed at its 3.5 hectares site. A very large archival collection of photographs of those railways and records created by them is also managed by the museum. The museum is operated with a large number of volunteers.
The South Australian Railways 520 class is a class of 4-8-4 steam locomotives operated by the former South Australian Railways.
Mount Barker railway station is a preserved railway station in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia, on the 1600 mm broad gauge Victor Harbor line, formerly operated by South Australian Railways and its successor, Australian National. When the nearby Adelaide-Melbourne railway line was converted to 1435 mm standard gauge in 1995, the line was disconnected. The station has become the headquarters of the Australian Railway Historical Society, a not-for-profit organisation trading as SteamRanger, which runs more than 200 trips per year, of various durations, on the line.
The 500 class were a class of South Australian Railways diesel shunter locomotives built at Islington Railway Workshops between 1964 and 1969.
The 900 class were a class of diesel locomotives built by Islington Railway Workshops for the South Australian Railways between 1951 and 1953.
The 700 class is a class of six diesel-electric locomotives based on the Alco DL500G model, built by AE Goodwin, Auburn, New South Wales for the South Australian Railways. They are virtually identical to the New South Wales 442 class locomotive.
Two models of South Australian Railways Brill railcar operated by the South Australian Railways between 1925 and 1971. Introduced to run on country rail services, the "Barwell Bulls" serviced most of the state's railway lines until they were eventually replaced by both the Bluebird and Redhen railcars. The last units were withdrawn in 1971.
The Islington Railway Workshops are railway workshops in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. They were the chief railway workshops of the South Australian Railways, and are still in operation today.
The X10 class is a class of steam locomotives previously operated by the New South Wales Government Railways of Australia.
The F351 class was a class of steam locomotives built for the New South Wales Government Railways in Australia.
The South Australian Railways 700 class was a class of 2-8-2 steam locomotives operated by the South Australian Railways.
The South Australian Railways 710 class was a class of 2-8-2 steam locomotives operated by the South Australian Railways.
The South Australian Railways R class engine, later upgraded to Rx Class engine is a class of 4-6-0 steam engines operated by the South Australian Railways.
The South Australian Railways F class is a class of 4-6-2T steam locomotives operated by the South Australian Railways.
The Milang railway line was a branch line, now closed, of the former South Australian Railways that left the mainline to Victor Harbor at the farming locality of Sandergrove, 9 km (6 mi) south of Strathalbyn and 89.7 km (55.75 mi) by rail from Adelaide. From there it proceeded in a south-easterly direction for 13.1 km (8.1 mi) to the riverport of Milang on Lake Alexandrina, in the estuary of the River Murray. The line was opened on 17 December 1884; it was formally closed on 17 June 1970. The route is now a "rail trail" that is popular with hikers. The precincts of the former Milang station house a railway museum that includes an innovative locomotive driving simulator for visitors to operate. Onsite is a centre for South Australian historical light railways.
South Australian Railways locomotives 1, 2 and 3, the first locomotives delivered to the railway, arrived in time for deployment on the soon-to-be-opened Adelaide to Port Adelaide line. Built in 1855 by William Fairbairn & Sons in Manchester, UK, they arrived at Port Adelaide on the brig Theodore in November 1855, and were unloaded in January 1856; they were assembled and placed service in the succeeding three months. They were named Adelaide, Victoria and Albert but were numbered only after many years, and a locomotive class was never assigned to them.
